Pedestal brace



Oct. '1, 1929. L. D. GREGG PEDESTAL BRACE Filed May 12, 1927 Patented (let. 1,

tartar LOUIS D. GREGG, OF HACKENSAOK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE GREGG COMPANY LTD'., OF HACKENSACK, NEVT JERSEY PEDESTAL BRACE Application filed May 12,

article of this character which shall provide both longitudinal and lateral bracing by means of a single bar suitably attached to the said pedestal and frame members.

It is a further object to provide stronger and more rigid bracing to pedestals than is possible with the types of braces now in common use.

A further object is to provide means for bracing the pedestals individually, thus facilitating repair, and the replacement of the parts of the running gear.

Other features and advantages of the device will be disclosed in the following specification and shown in detail in the accompanying drawings showing several forms of embodiment and in which- Fig. 1 shows a side view of the brace secured to a pedestal and the side sill of a car under-frame.

Fig. 2 shows an end view of same.

Fig. 3 shows a bottom plan view in which the diagonal course of the brace from the pedestal base to the side sill is better illustrated.

F ig. 4 shows a perspective view of another form of the brace secured to the side of a sill.

Fig. 5 shows a slight modification of the form shown in Figure 4.

Fig. 6 is a side view of a form.

Fig. 7 is a side view of another modifica still difi'erent tion showing the brace attached with both end members extending outward and upward to the side sill without spread at the points of attachment.

Fig. 8 shows an end view of Figure 7. i

It is well known in the railway art that it is essential to provide sufiicient bracing from the car under frame for the bottom of the pedestal around the axle journal. Heretofore it has been common practice to provide longitudinal braces which'running longitudinally of the car body did not take up the cross or transverse shocks often imparted to the pedestals or to use lateral. braces alone 192?. Serial no. 190,732.

which imparted lateral or cross rigidity without the longitudinal reinforcement. As will be seen from the following disclosure, I have provided for both longitudinal and lateral bracing by means of a single brace member, which gives both the lateral and longitudinal reinforcement without material increase in cost over the braces heretofore used.

Referring now to Figure l of the drawings, showing one embodiment of my combination brace, the brace 10 is secured to the base of a pedestal 11 by means of the bolts as shown at 12 and 13, and to the side sill 1 1 of a car frame by the bolts 15 and 16, the pedestal being attached to a pedestal sill 20 which is parallel to and substantially to one side of the side sill 14. The pedestals 11 embrace the journal boXes 21 and are adapted to have springs (not shown) between I the upper portion 11 and the journal box 21.

As clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the brace 10 which is preferably of steel, is U-shaped in two planes, having a lower horizontal section 10 and upwardly diagonally bent legs 10 which not only extend upwards, but also longitudinally and outwards. The ends are again bent to form flats 10 through which the bolts'pass to fasten the brace to a body member usually a side sill 14: which is laterally spaced from the pedestal sill 20. Thus,

- 10 and as a longitudinal support by reason of the spacing of the ends 10 away from each end of the pedestal 11. The horizontal section 10 also serves to tie the bottoms of the pedestal legs 11 together spreading of the same.

If desired the brace my be constructed of two or three parts without materially reducing its strength for by cutting the lower horizontal member 10 in the middle and securing the separate parts together in the same position as before. no change occurs inasmuch as the portion 10 will act in the same as a tie between the pedestal legs 11 and as a support against longitudinal strains.

It is clear from the drawings that each pedestal will be individually braced thus permitting easier replacementof parts than as 109 to prevent is customary in ordinary forms of car construction of this general type in which the brace bars extend from the bottom of one pedestal to another pedestal and thence to the pedestal sill directly above.

Referring to Figure 4 of the drawings, a modified form of the invention is shown in which the extremities l7 and 18 of the brace 19, which is otherwise similar to that shown at 10 in Figure 1, are secured vertically to the side of a frame sill 14% spaced laterally from pedestal sill (not shown).

The modification shown in Figure 5 is so formed that the extremity 28 contacts with both the side and bottom of the frame sill 14 to which it is to be attached, the main portion. of the brace 24 being the same as shown in the preceding; figures.

In the modified form as shown in Fig. 6, the brace is composed of a portion 25 bent outwardly and upwardly similar to the left side of Fig. 1 while the portion 26 is bent directly upward and outward, but not longitudinally, and is not intended to act except as a lateral brace. This form might be highlv desirable when there is insufficient room to extend the portion 26 longitudinally outward as in Fig. 1, a condition occasionally encountered on car frames of short length.

A'further modified form of the invention is shown in Fig. 7 and in end view in Fig. 8. in which the peedstal brace 27 has both arms bent outwardly in a vertical plane at 90 degrees to the car frame to form a rigid connection between the outwardly spaced car sill 14 and the lower portion of the pedestal 1-1. An integrally formed central portion 27 extends between the arms 27 below the pedestal to provide some longitudinal bracing of the pedestal aswell as tying the bottpms of the pedestal legs in spaced relations 11p.

From the foregoing description, it is obvious that my new brace is characterized by greater economy of manufacture and assembly, and is more eflicient in service in that it provides a better means to resist the side thrust on curves which tends to twist the pedestal. Such twisting causes uneven wear on the brasses and creates a tendency for them to ride up over the collars on the journals. It also provides a means for withstanding the strains resulting from the jolting of the wheels over the ties in case of derailment to a-greater degree than other types heretofore used are capable.

While I have shown several preferred forms that this invention may take and still be with in the spirit of the fundamental idea, I do not wish to be limited to the exact constructions shown, but desire protection on the broader spirit of the invention and to be limited only by the spirit and scope of the appended claims What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the like, the combination with a pedestal member, of a brace member having a portion attached to said pedestal and diverging upwardly and outwardly therefrom to points of attachment on the car frame transversely spaced. from the pedestal.

2. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the like, the combination with a pedestal sill, a side sill, and a pedestal member attached to said pedestal sill, of a brace member having a portion attached to said pedestal and extending upward and divergingly outward therefrom to points of attachment on the side sill frame.

3. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the like, an angular brace-bar attached to a pedestal member, extending from said pedestal divergingly outward, upward and longitudinally to points of attachment on the car frame transversely spaced from the vertical longitudinal plane of the pedestal.

4. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the li ke, in combination with a pedestal member, a bar of suitable material secured to the said pedestal member and adapted to brace same longitudinally and laterally by means of strips secured to each side of said pedestal adjacent the bottom and extending upward and outward divergingly to points of attachment on a car frame transversely spaced from the vertical longitudinal plane of the pedestal.

5. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the like, in combination with a pedestal member, a bar of suitable material secured to the base of the said pedestal and extending therefrom outward and upward to points of attachment on a car frame sill, the said points of attachment being located at a distance from each other greater than the width of the said pedestal base, and the extremities of the said bar coming into contact with the base of the side sill and extending therefrom outward and upward along the face thereof and suitably secured thereto.

6. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the like, the combination with a pedestal member, of a brace member having a horizontal portion attached to said pedestal adjacent the bottom and extending upward and outward therefrom to points of attachment on the car frame, the said points of attachment being in a horizontal plane, and more distant from each other than the points of departure from the said pedestal member and spaced substantially outward from said pedestal.

7. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the like, in combination with a pedestal mem her, a bar of suitable material secured to the said'pedestal member and adapted to brace same transversely by means of a single strip attached to one side of said pedestal adjacent the bottom, and extending upward and out ward diagonally to points of attachment on a car part transversely spaced from the vertical longitudinal plane of the pedestal.

8. In a pedestal brace for railway cars and the like, in combination with a pedestal member, a bar of suitable material secured to the base of the said pedestal and extending therefrom outward and upward to points of attachment on a car frame sill one of which points is transversely opposite to the adjacent pedestal base, but in a higher plane thereto, and the other of which is on the same plane as the first, but longitudinally removed from its nearest pedestal base, and both points of attachment being on the face of the said frame sill.

9. In a pedestal brace for railway cars, an integral piece of metal extending between the pedestal legs to brace the same, and extending 'divergingly outwardly and upwardly from the bottom, of each pedestal leg to points of attachment on the car frame transversely spaced from the vertical longitudinal plane of the pedestal.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature to this specification.

LOUIS D. GREGG. 

